There is incredible momentum underway at Fort Ticonderoga as we press forward with our strategic goals to increase access and awareness, expand educational impact, and strengthen our historical resources and collections.
Fort Ticonderoga is uniquely positioned to be the leading national institution that fosters an ongoing dialogue about citizens, soldiers and service rooted in our rich military heritage. The ideals and sacrifices of those who served and forged a new nation must be remembered. [PHOTO]
It’s thrilling and rewarding to look back on the accomplishments of this year, none of which would have been possible without support from generous donors from across the nation. We engaged visitors from across the world, documented and made accessible thousands of museum objects, presented dramatic and impactful programs, exhibits, and special events, and saw tremendous progress on the restoration of the 1826 National Historic Landmark, the Pavilion.
Let’s reflect:
- Fort Ticonderoga was recently awarded the highly competitive Save America’s Treasures Grant, funded by the Historic Preservation Fund and administered by the National Park Service, Department of Interior through a competitive process. The $465,000 grant will be utilized in the restoration of the north demi-lune, a triangular stone defensive structure connected to the fort. Matching funds to support the project have been raised. The project has begun with planning this fall. Restoration work is expected to be underway in the spring of 2020.
- The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation awarded the Pavilion project with a $100,000 Community Smart Growth Grant to support visitor accessibility to the restored structure.
- The Pavilion restoration continues. We have completed the majority of the site work including utilities, drains, electric and now turn our attention to the interior work over the winter with anticipation for the opening of the restored Pavilion in late 2020 to mark Ticonderoga’s 200 years of preservation, considered the earliest in America.
- Our team greatly expanded partnerships to help maximize our impact in 2019 in numerous areas of operations including collaborations with the Adirondack Culinary Trail, the Omohundro Institute, and the United States Military Academy at West Point.
- We also amplified our reach through the implementation of a $600,000 I LOVE NY Grant project. Funded in part through New York’s Empire State Development, the grant project included the development of a new responsive multi-lingual website and significantly expanded marketing capacity. Online ticket sales grew by 249% in 2019 and the website saw an increase of 41% growth in web traffic.
- The New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) has awarded Fort Ticonderoga a highly competitive operating grant for $39,000 annually through 2021. Fort Ticonderoga’s economic impact of $12.1 million annually on the North Country and our transformative capital campaign were highlighted in NYSCA’s grant announcement emphasizing the importance of articulating impact.
- Looking forward to our Winter Quarters through April 2020, our museum staff is excited to present a robust line-up of programs and visitor experiences, as well as educational outreach throughout New York, New England and the mid-Atlantic. From Brussels to Burlington, VT, staff will be presenting at professional meetings to share their latest research and engage new audiences.
If you have not done so already, please consider a year-end tax-deductible gift to further support Fort Ticonderoga’s mission of education and preservation and our ambitious plans for 2020!
About Fort Ticonderoga:
Welcoming visitors since 1909, Fort Ticonderoga preserves North America’s largest 18th-century artillery collection, 2,000 acres of historic landscape on Lake Champlain, and Carillon Battlefield, and the largest series of untouched Revolutionary War era earthworks surviving in America. As a multi-day destination and the premier place to learn more about our nation’s earliest years and America’s military heritage, Fort Ticonderoga engages more than 75,000 visitors each year with an economic impact of more than $12 million annually and offers programs, historic interpretation, boat cruises, tours, demonstrations, and exhibits throughout the year, and is open for daily visitation May through October. Fort Ticonderoga is supported in part through generous donations and with some general operating support made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.